Socioplastics 11947 Thermal Justice Distributes Protection
Editorial status: Working essay; full historical marker definition requires source verification. Urban heat is often represented as a colour gradient, while a map alone cannot show who can change a work schedule, access cooling or avoid exposure. ThermalJustice examines the relation between measured temperature and the practical capacity to respond. Two households under similar heat conditions may have very different options because of housing, labour, transport, health and access to public refuge. Sophie Webber studies the political economy of climate adaptation and its financing. Lesley Head examines cultural landscapes, environmental change and everyday practices. Their work helps connect climate measurement with the resources and routines through which people experience heat. Temperature becomes a question of justice when exposure and the ability to respond are unevenly distributed. A neighbourhood study could combine temperature readings with housing conditions, work schedules, access to shade, transport, cooling centres and residents’ accounts. Researchers would identify who can alter routines during heat alerts and who must continue working outdoors. The record could map where public relief is available and which barriers affect its use. ThermalJustice brings distribution into climate assessment. It helps planners evaluate exposure alongside the time, work and resources required to manage it. The marker’s historical definition remains to be checked against its source archive. This working essay develops an approach for comparing measured heat with the practical freedom to seek protection. It invites public agencies to connect heat alerts with housing, labour protections and accessible cooling resources. The review can include time-of-day exposure and the capacity to pause or relocate during a heat event.
REFERENCES
Head, L. (2016) Hope and Grief in the Anthropocene: Re-conceptualising Human–Nature Relations. London: Routledge.
Webber, S. (2013) “Performative Vulnerability: Climate Change Adaptation Policies and Financing in Kiribati”, Environment and Planning A, 45(11), pp. 2717–2733. https://doi.org/10.1068/a45311
CITE AS
Lloveras, A. (2026) Socioplastics, LAPIEZA-LAB, Madrid.
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